In Bloom, Still reflects resilience rising from silence and despair. The glass petals unfold delicately above a base of Blue Opal granite; dark, cold, and immovable, yet streaked with glimmers of hidden blue light. This contrast mirrors the lives of countless young girls trafficked across the Yalu River, the frigid boundary between North Korea and China, where many are sold into forced marriages or exploitation.
The weight of the granite anchors the work in the harsh reality of their suffering; lives fractured, silenced, and traded as commodities. Yet the petals of opalescent glass lift upward, catching the light, testifying to a dignity that cannot be extinguished. Even in the most desolate circumstances, their humanity endures, fragile yet unbroken, quietly insisting on beauty.
The work invites reflection on this tension: a world of oppression that seeks to crush, and a hidden strength that continues to rise. It is a meditation on the silent bloom of hope - still becoming, still unfolding, still in bloom, even along the frozen banks of the Yalu.
